Calvin Crest - A Brief History of Calvin Crest

A Brief History of Calvin Crest

The Miwok Indians were the first people to live in the area of the Calvin Crest grounds, during the warm months and moving to the foothills and valley during the winter.

In 1873 the California Lumber Company set up operations near here and built a flume which sent lumber to Madera. Completed in 1876, the flume was 53 miles (85 km) long. By 1907, 35 million board feet (82,000 m³) were shipped each year. Much of the timber industry was shut down with the Great Depression of the 1930s. Remnants of the industry can be seen in the old narrow gauge railroad ties and the stumps of the giant sequoia that were left behind.

Hills Speckerman, a German immigrant, homesteaded the Calvin Crest area. His first cabin was located by the current Maintenance parking lot where he planted the first apple trees, grew potatoes and bred pigs and dogs. After his cabin burned to the ground, he moved to the area known as Speckerman's Meadow. Following his death in 1909 at the approximate age of 90 years, the land reverted back to the government for back taxes.

John Nelder, a hermit living in the area among the giant sequoia, was visited by the naturalist, John Muir in what is now Nelder Grove which sits adjacent to Calvin Crest.

A man named Darnold owned the property after Speckerman and he built the original Ranch House. Later, Dr. Clarence Wells homesteaded 40 acres (160,000 m2) and then traded for an additional 300 acres (1.2 km²). Working as a physician to the lumber companies, Dr. Wells expanded the Ranch as well as enlarged the apple orchard and planted roses and other exotic plants.

In the early fifties, the San Joaquin Presbytery began looking for a property to purchase to establish a camping program. They had been renting the YMCA camp at Lake Sequoia. After some searching, they learned the property of Dr. Wells was for sale. The presbytery voted to purchase the 340 acres (1.4 km²) in December 1954 with the price tag of $86,000. The summer of 1955 brought the first campers to Calvin Crest. There were two one-week sessions where the campers slept on the ground in the apple orchard and swam in Bass Lake. There were 65 campers and the annual budget was $25.

In 1956, the first major building phase began when construction started on the Dining Hall and the swimming pool.